DAYBREAK DAILY: Alexis Murphy case goes to trial Thursday

‘GOOD MORNING WASHINGTON’: Among the reports – Updates on the outbreak of deadly tornadoes; Charles Severance soon will return to the area from W.Va.; much more, beginning at 4:30 a.m. M-F.

ALEXIS MURPHY: Missing teen and the suspect’s trial, per the (Lynchburg) News & Advance, “A question has lingered throughout Nelson County and the surrounding region that has left many people praying and wondering during the past nine months - what happened to Alexis Murphy? The long-awaited details of the case are expected to come to light as the trial of Randy Allen Taylor, the man accused of murder in connection to the missing teenager's disappearance, begins Thursday in Nelson County Circuit Court.

“Murphy, 17, was last seen at the Liberty gas station in Lovingston last year on Aug. 3, when family members thought she left her home in Shipman to get hair extensions for her senior portrait. She vanished that night, and eight days later Taylor, 48, who lives just north of the village of Lovingston off U.S. 29, was arrested and charged with a single count of abduction.” http://bit.ly/1hRLmQZ

OZZY BEER: Or not, per the Baltimore Sun, “This time, The Brewer's Art went with a local celebrity of sorts.

“After receiving a cease-and-desist letter on behalf of musician Ozzy Osbourne, the Baltimore brewery has renamed its Ozzy beer Beazly, said co-owner Tom Creegan on Tuesday afternoon. It is named after Mark Barcus, a bartender of the Mount Vernon bar for nearly 17 years. His nickname around the bar is Beazly, Creegan said.

"The running joke joke was if you worked here long enough, you don't get a gold watch — you get a gold ale," Creegan said. The company submitted the proposed name change to Osbourne's representatives, Creegan said, and they approved it.” http://bsun.md/1mbg23F

CHARLES SEVERANCE: Just the facts, per ABC7-WJLA, “On Tuesday, the West Virginia Supreme Court refused a request to delay the extradition of a man being investigated in three Alexandria murders that police say may be linked. Charles Severance could be sent back to Virginia as early as this week.

"Severance has been fighting extradition to Virginia ever since being taken into custody in Wheeling, West Virginia, on March 13, and although he has not been charged in the Alexandria murders, he is facing gun possession charge as a felon in Loudoun County. However, statements made in open court, along with court documents, indicate he is being investigated in connection with the murders of Nancy Dunning in 2003, Ron Kirby in 2013, and Ruthanne Lodato earlier this year. Alexandria Police have said ballistics evidence indicates the three unsolved murders may be linked.” http://wj.la/1ize5Qx

UNDER THE TABLE: And dreaming, per the Richmond Times-Dispatch, “Attorney General Mark R. Herring declared Tuesday that children of illegal immigrants who are lawfully present in the United States and Virginia under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program qualify for in-state college tuition.

“Herring said the students, also known as DREAMers, must still gain admission to an institution of higher education, maintain their DACA status, and meet the same residency requirements as all other students.” http://bit.ly/1fPjNYz

UPON FURTHER REVIEW: Of District voting, per the Washington Post, “D.C. elections officials offered an entirely new explanation Tuesday for the major vote-counting delays that plagued the city’s April 1 Democratic primary: The issue was not five mishandled electronic voting machines, but a broad computer network failure.

“The network failure was a mystery to elections officials as it unfolded, said Clifford D. Tatum, executive director of the Board of Elections. But its effect was abundantly clear to all involved on election night, when vote-counting — including ballots the city had accumulated during weeks of early voting — did not begin until almost 10.” http://wapo.st/1ks7AgO

EXECUTION GONE AWRY: Again. . ., per the Associated Press, “Oklahoma prison officials halted an inmate's execution on Tuesday after a new drug combination left the man writhing and clenching his teeth on the gurney, before he later died of a heart attack.

“Clayton Lockett, 38, was declared unconscious 10 minutes after the first of the state's new three-drug lethal injection combination was administered. Three minutes later, though, he began breathing heavily, writhing, clenching his teeth and straining to lift his head off the pillow.” http://apne.ws/1fry4QN

DONALD STERLING: Boom goes the dynamite, per the Los Angeles Daily News, “Amid racially charged comments attributed to him in a released audiotape, Clippers owner Donald Sterling faces a lifetime suspension, $2.5 million fine and a possible forced sale of the franchise, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced in a press conference Tuesday in New York.

“Effective immediately, I am banning Mr. Sterling for life from any association with the Clippers organization or the NBA,” Silver said. Silver added he will urge the Board of Governors to force the sale of the team. “I will do everything in my power to assure that happens,” said Silver, who added he needs only a three-quarters vote for a measure to pass. “I fully expect to get the support I need from the other NBA owners to remove him.” http://bit.ly/1lxCIMS

BREAKING THE BANK: Or something like that, per the New York Times, “Federal prosecutors are nearing criminal charges against some of the world’s biggest banks, according to lawyers briefed on the matter, a development that could produce the first guilty plea from a major bank in more than two decades.

“In doing so, prosecutors are confronting the popular belief that Wall Street institutions have grown so important to the economy that they cannot be charged. A lack of criminal prosecutions of banks and their leaders fueled a public outcry over the perception that Wall Street giants are “too big to jail.” http://nyti.ms/1fP2ebg

IMMIGRATION AND BOEHNER: Of a head-scratcher, per The Hill, “Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Tuesday moved to reassure a restive Republican conference that he does not intend to risk his gavel on immigration. Boehner told members he would not jam a comprehensive immigration bill through the House ahead of the November midterm elections, saying there is no “secret conspiracy” to do so, according to one lawmaker.

“. . . Boehner made the comments at a private party meeting normally dedicated to fundraising, amid intense speculation about whether he will stay on as Speaker for another Congress. Questions about Boehner’s future have gone hand in hand with conservative fears, stoked by right-wing talk radio hosts, about a secret plan to move immigration reform, with some suggesting that a lame-duck Speaker might want to cement his legacy on the way out.” http://bit.ly/1iBCDCn

POLITICO PLAY: “CHICAGO — Democratic attacks on the Koch brothers for secretive campaign spending have become a virtual plank in the party’s platform, but it turns out big-money liberals can be just as defensive when their own closed-door activities are put in the spotlight.

“During a gathering here of major Democratic donors this week that has raised more than $30 million for liberal groups, questions about the party’s split personality on the issue were dodged, rejected or answered with an array of rationalizations. That is, when they weren’t met with recriminations or even gentle physical force.” http://politi.co/1pNrfx3

NOT SO FAST: Of video store(s), per City Paper, “Chevy Chase's Potomac Video is shutting down, and the eulogies have had an extra touch of cultural dejection. Last week, DCist published a nice read chronicling the "final days at D.C.'s last video rental store," while just yesterday, the Washington Post ran a long piece on Potomac Video under the headline, "After 33 years, Washington's last video store closes its doors."

“While the tissues may be appropriate—thanks to its knowledgeable staff, Potomac Video was a wonderful store—the word "last" is not. There's still one other (nonadult!) video rental store in D.C., and while it may not be flourishing, it definitely still exists. Woodner Video Rental lies on the first floor of the Woodner Apartments on the 3600 block of 16th Street NW in Mount Pleasant, and has been there for about 20 years. The store is open to residents of the building as well as anyone else.” http://bit.ly/1kb3jeK

ETHAN SAYLOR: And the Senate, per the Frederick News-Post, “As the number of people with developmental disabilities and mental illness interacting with police in the United States grows, law enforcement agencies need to be better trained, a panel told a Senate Judiciary subcommittee Tuesday.

“Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said the hearing was held in honor of the late Ethan Saylor, a New Market man who had Down syndrome and died in the custody of three off-duty Frederick County sheriff's deputies in January 2013. He called the meeting "Ethan's Hearing." Durbin said the federal government needs to do more to improve nationwide training efforts.” http://bit.ly/1ksbxCf

RAISE REASONING: Not-so-hidden agenda?, per Gazette.Net, “Montgomery County employees are scheduled to receive pay increases for the second straight year, while election-year politics have begun to creep into county decisions. The County Council cast an 8-1 preliminary vote Tuesday to approve a package worth more than $23 million of wage, step, longevity and other increases negotiated by the county and the three unions that represent its workers.” http://bit.ly/1kqvw42

LOOK, NO HANDS: Or driver, per DCist, “As part of an effort to master city streets, a Google self-driving car has been self-driving around D.C. for the past few days. In a blog post Monday, Chris Urmson, director of Google's Self-Driving Car Project, said the project has shifted toward city streets over the past year.” http://bit.ly/1iBEOWA

MEDICAID EXPANSION: Defending obstruction, per the Loudoun Times-Mirror, “Three Republican delegates from Loudoun stood firm Monday night in their opposition to expanded Medicaid in Virginia, this despite a largely hostile, relentless audience lobbying in favor of extending the health care program to as many as 400,000 Virginians. At a town hall-style forum at the Ashburn library, state Dels. Tag Greason (R-32nd), Randy Minchew (R-10th) and David LaRock (R-33rd) were deluged with questions about why they're fighting against Medicaid expansion.

“The event was organized by the conservative political action group Americans for Prosperity, which invited only Republican lawmakers to attend and lead the forum. Democratic organizers, however, corralled pro-expansion supporters to Ashburn, enough so that the majority of the audience appeared to favor expansion. As they've consistently done, the Republican lawmakers voiced doubt that the federal government will make good on its promise to fund Medicaid expansion. Under the Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare, the federal government has pledged to cover 100 percent of the expansion cost for the first three years and 90 percent of the expense thereafter.” http://bit.ly/1luOk3k

TRENDING ON ABC7 FACEBOOK: “Southeast D.C. has been ranked 22 on a "Top 25 Most Dangerous Neighborhoods" list released by NeighborhoodScout.com. The numbers reportedly show that while one in 80 D.C. residents is a crime victim each year, in this particular area, that rate is about six times higher.” http://wj.la/1fqaEv3